"THE LAND OF THE HALF-HUMANS" by Thangjam Ibopishak

The Land of the Half-Humans -By “Thangjam Ibopishak”
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Notes By: ENG HONS HUB
Thangjam Ibopishak, born in 1948, is a well-known poet

from Manipur.
He started writing poetry at a young age and published
his first collection, "Apaiba Thawai," at the age of 21 in
1969.
His poetry collection "Bhoot Amasung Maikhum" won him
the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award in 1997.
Ibopishak's poetry often talks about the problems faced
by the people of Manipur.
He writes about social unrest, corruption in the
government, and how people are exploited. His poetry is
straightforward and hard-hitting.
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“For six months just head without body, six months just body
without head, has
anyone seen a land inhabited by these people?
No? I have; it’s not a folktale; I’ve not only seen but have been to
that land.
For six months to talk and to eat is their job; like
a millstone grinding. The
following six months Bhima gorging and Shakuni
suffering; for the headless
body only shitting is its share. The head talks,
eats, drinks; just talking, eating
drinking. While the body is working, laboring,
shitting; work, labor, shit. To
sweat, to be bone-weary. In the land of the half- body.
Do women live in that land? What does the species of women
look like?
There are women; there are children. The same goes for women
too, half-and-half body
This stanza describes a mythical land where the

inhabitants experience a strange division of
their bodies' functions over the course of a
year. For six months, they only have a head and
no body, and for the next six months, they have
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a body but no head.

During the first six months, when
they have only a head, their main
activities are talking and eating,
almost like a machine grinding
away at its task. The head seems
to enjoy these activities, while
the body, without a head to
control it, is left to do unpleasant
tasks like laboring and defecating.
Then, in the next six months, the roles are reversed. Now, the
body has the ability to eat and enjoy food (like the character
Bhima from Indian mythology, known for his enormous
appetite), while the head suffers without the ability to
indulge in these pleasures. Meanwhile, the body continues its
laborious activities, while the head just talks and consumes
without contributing to the hard work.
The speaker wonders about the
existence of women in this land and
imagines that they would also experience
this strange division of body functions,
just like the men. It's a vivid and surreal
depiction of a society where the body
and mind are disconnected and have
separate experiences throughout the
year.
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They have long hair like the women of our land.

They are big, tall, buxom, broad and well-
proportioned. As for clothes, they hang them
below the waist. The law of the land does not
permit a body hidden by clothes. When the body
dwells for six months it is springtime for them.
(Since the bodies are headless when the men
and the women meet, they are not fastidious).
The head-only gives birth within six months.
Besides talking and eating the mouths of the women also deliver
babies. The women have more attributes than the men do. That is
why the women have no teeth. God created them with ingenuity.
When the head walks, its two broad, fanlike ears, spread wide
and it flies like a bird, beating its wings. When they speak, we can
comprehend their language; they speak the language of men. But
when the headless body speaks, a voice that no stranger can
recognize emits from an orifice of the body. This voice is also
accompanied by an odor.
This part of the text describes the women in this strange

land. They have long hair similar to women from the speaker's
own land. They're described as being big, tall, and well-
proportioned, with large breasts and broad bodies. They wear
their clothes below the waist because it's
against their law to cover their bodies with
clothing. When their bodies are active for
six months, it's like springtime for them.
The women give birth while only having a
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head, just like the men do other activities

such as talking and eating during their head-
only phase. Interestingly, the women are said
to have more abilities than the men, which is
why they don't have teeth. This is depicted as
a clever design by God. When the heads move,
their large ears spread out like wings, allowing
them to fly like birds. When they speak, the language is
understandable to the speaker, but when the headless bodies
speak, the voice is strange and accompanied by an unpleasant
odor.
A land such as this one is in the news; a land

much talked about.
The moon shines at night; the sun shines in
the afternoon. There is no predicament of
poverty; dearth of food and clothes is
unknown. Some men even surpass Kuber.
And the earnings of the body’s sweat of six
months, the six month-old head eats up with
a vengeance.
This stanza talks about how this strange land is often

discussed in the news and is quite famous. It mentions that in
this land, there is a clear distinction between day and night—
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the moon shines at night, while the sun shines during the day,
just like in our world.
The stanza also highlights that
there is no poverty in this land,
and people have an abundance
of food and clothes. In fact,
some individuals are so wealthy
that they even surpass Kuber,
who is a mythical god associated with wealth in Indian
mythology.
However, despite the abundance,
there's an imbalance in how wealth is
distributed. The hard work and sweat
of the body over six months are
consumed by the head in the next six
months, almost greedily or
aggressively. This suggests a
disparity or unfairness in how resources are utilized or shared
in this society.
There are political rights; a government

is set up in the land. Democracy
functions with total success. An election
is held every five years. But for the
people in this land there are no names.
So for the nameless citizens the
nameless
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representatives govern the land of the half-

humans. Because whether to give
human names to the head or to the body—no one
can decide. A land such as
this is very much in the news, a land much talked
about.”
This stanza describes how in the land of the

half-humans, there is a functioning government with political
rights and a democratic system. Elections are held every five
years, and the democracy works well. However, the people in
this land don't have names. So, the representatives who
govern them are also nameless.
The lack of names for both
the citizens and their
representatives creates a
unique situation. It's unclear
whether the head or the body
should be given names, so
nobody can decide. Despite this
peculiarity, this land is still
widely discussed and remains a
topic of interest in the news.
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 Dystopian Society: The land is presented as a place of

absurdity and hardship. The "half-humans" represent a
fractured and incomplete society.
 Identity Crisis: The poem grapples with the question
of identity. Are the heads or the bodies the true humans?
This reflects a struggle for identity within a larger group,
perhaps a nation or ethnicity.
 Lack of Political Stability: The poem describes a
democracy with nameless representatives, highlighting a
dysfunctional political system that fails to represent the
people
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The Land of the Half-Humans -By “Thangjam Ibopishak”

Thangjam Ibopishak, born in 1948, is a well-known poet

This stanza describes a mythical land where the

a body but no head.

They have long hair like the women of our land.

This part of the text describes the women in this strange

head, just like the men do other activities

A land such as this one is in the news; a land

This stanza talks about how this strange land is often

There are political rights; a government

representatives govern the land of the half-

This stanza describes how in the land of the

 Dystopian Society: The land is presented as a place of

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